BREAKING: CNN reports that the SCOTUS just blocked denied certiorari (CHS notes: that’s what I get for using CNN’s reporter language.) for the El-Masri civil lawsuit against the US for alleged torture of him by CIA agents and others when they held him at a black site — after picking him up on inaccurate information. SCOTUSblog has more. Also of note today, the government’s brief in the Al Odah v. United States (06-1196) case is due (this is the habeas challenge case to Guantanamo detentions.)

They rejected it, leaving in place all the questions that are still swirling around about “state secrets” constraints rather than give the Bush Administration the blanket immunity from suit they’ve been asking for — so it’s not all roses for Bush on this one.

The civil liability question on this was far from solid, despite the abhorrent governmental conduct. But by not taking the case or not dismissing it outright on state secrets grounds, they leave open the prospect of lots of future challenges from the circuits below instead of shutting them off entirely. Which opens up an entire window of discovery into what the Administration may or may not have been doing in a much more public way through the courts. The SCOTUS simply declined to review the case.

______________________

Because paying attention to details, listening to the professionals who keep this nation safe on the front lines…and not using information for short-term personally aggrandizing propaganda purposes is too damn hard, the Bush Administration has — yet again — proven themselves to be rank incompetents in the field of espionage. And they’ve endangered the nation in the process by severing a valuable surveillance network that was a useful window into al qaeda operations. Everything these people touch turns to shit, doesn’t it?

Leaving the question of outsourcing valuable intel operations aside for another day, this is just disturbingly inane failure on a lot of levels. Via the WaPo:

A small private intelligence company that monitors Islamic terrorist groups obtained a new Osama bin Laden video ahead of its official release last month, and around 10 a.m. on Sept. 7, it notified the Bush administration of its secret acquisition. It gave two senior officials access on the condition that the officials not reveal they had it until the al-Qaeda release.

Within 20 minutes, a range of intelligence agencies had begun downloading it from the company’s Web site. By midafternoon that day, the video and a transcript of its audio track had been leaked from within the Bush administration to cable television news and broadcast worldwide.

The founder of the company, the SITE Intelligence Group, says this premature disclosure tipped al-Qaeda to a security breach and destroyed a years-long surveillance operation that the company has used to intercept and pass along secret messages, videos and advance warnings of suicide bombings from the terrorist group’s communications network.

“Techniques that took years to develop are now ineffective and worthless,” said Rita Katz, the firm’s 44-year-old founder, who has garnered wide attention by publicizing statements and videos from extremist chat rooms and Web sites, while attracting controversy over the secrecy of SITE’s methodology. Her firm provides intelligence about terrorist groups to a wide range of paying clients, including private firms and military and intelligence agencies from the United States and several other countries….

By midafternoon, several television news networks reported obtaining copies of the transcript. A copy posted around 3 p.m. on Fox News’s Web site referred to SITE and included page markers identical to those used by the group. “This confirms that the U.S. government was responsible for the leak of this document,” Katz wrote in an e-mail to Leiter at 5 p.m.

Al-Qaeda supporters, now alerted to the intrusion into their secret network, put up new obstacles that prevented SITE from gaining the kind of access it had obtained in the past, according to Katz.

Remember the Pakistani source that got burned in the run-up to the 2004 election, when Bush needed a PR boost and that personal need was put ahead of national security considerations? Yes, me too. (Does the name Valerie ring a bell?) Rank incompetence and utter lack of care for long-term consequences to all of us, let alone slack-assed inattention to detail and long-held security and need to know protocols. Add in an utter failure to learn from past mistakes. Welcome to Bushworld. Feel safer?

Tell me, please, what part of “trust us” is even remotely plausible for this Administration of bunglers? Honestly?

And, as an interesting aside, Laura Rozen points out that a NYSun article on the same topic neglects to mention both the WH and Fox News connections on this. Why is that, exactly?

I’ve been following this story and sadly it is not at all surprising from a bunch who outed a CIA operative for political purposes. I can’t imagine that this is not a criminal offence, but with spineless dems I doubt it will be punished.

Shocking. There’s just no history of anyone in this administration doing the exactly wrong thing at the exactly wrong time, every chance they get. I just cannot imagine why the US has become a laughing stock to the rest of the world.

A retired lieutenant commander in the Navy Reserve who served with the Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage questioned in a little-noticed editorial Sunday why six active nuclear armed cruise missiles were being transferred to an active bomber base that “just happens to be the staging area for Middle Eastern operations.”

(snip)

At the end of his editorial, he poses the following questions.

The questions that must be answered:

1 Why, and for what ostensible purpose, were these nuclear weapons taken to Barksdale?

2 How long was it before the error was discovered?

3 How many mistakes and errors were made, and how many needed to be made, for this to happen?

4 How many and which security protocols were overlooked?

5 How many and which safety procedures were bypassed or ignored?

6 How many other nuclear command and control non-observations of procedure have there been?

7 What is Congress going to do to better oversee U.S. nuclear command and control?

8 How does this incident relate to concern for reliability of control over nuclear weapons and nuclear materials in Russia, Pakistan and elsewhere?

9 Does the Bush administration, as some news reports suggest, have plans to attack Iran with nuclear weapons?

10 If this was an accident, have we degraded our military to a point where we are now making critical mistakes with our nuclear arsenal? If so, how do we correct this?

Does anyone out there still believe this Admin really wants to “win” the so-called war on terror?
Just like the “war on drugs,” for an authoritarian government, “terror” is the gift that keeps on giving.
BTW, was the latest OBL tape genuine? I’m not entirely convinced.

Attaturk — I started to do an entire listing of every shitty action that I could remember. And then I got even angrier and had to stop for the day. One of these days, though, I’m just going to put together a list… Blergh.

Attaturk — I started to do an entire listing of every shitty action that I could remember. And then I got even angrier and had to stop for the day. One of these days, though, I’m just going to put together a list… Blergh.

SAO #1: OMG! Look at this tape. Don’t we have great intelligence folks! Let’s pass it along to Fox, so they can let everyone in on our genius.

SAO #2: Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if someone finds out the leak came from us?

SAO #1: How’s that ever going to happen?

Folks, you’re dealing with a company who apparently specializes in electronic hacking, tracking down holes in security systems, and exploiting the holes to defeat the operators — and you don’t think they’ll figure out who blew their whole operation?

Personally, I love that the company is going public with this. “We’re not going to let our company’s reputation go down the tubes because of BushCo PR.”

Worst of all, though, is what happens after these folks get their hooks on some AQ intel. “OK, do we call the WH this time or not?”

I found it a bit confusing: who are these “private” intelligence outfits “scouring the internet that I’ve heard of? There is a big difference between the work of this freelancing Israeli, Katz (portrayed, touchingly, as a disinterested crusader) and the operations of our intelligence agencies Pakistan.

The last paragraphs of the Post article raise questions:

“A small number of private intelligence companies compete with SITE in scouring terrorists’ networks for information and messages, and some have questioned the company’s motives and methods, including the claim that its access to al-Qaeda’s network was unique. One competitor, Ben Venzke, founder of IntelCenter, said he questions SITE’s decision — as described by Katz — to offer the video to White House policymakers rather than quietly share it with intelligence analysts.

“It is not just about getting the video first,” Venzke said. “It is about having the proper methods and procedures in place to make sure that the appropriate intelligence gets to where it needs to go in the intelligence community and elsewhere in order to support ongoing counterterrorism operations.”

SAO #1: OMG! Look at this tape. Don’t we have great intelligence folks! Let’s pass it along to Fox, so they can let everyone in on our genius.

SAO #2: Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if someone finds out the leak came from us?

SAO #1: How’s that ever going to happen?

Folks, you’re dealing with a company who apparently specializes in electronic hacking, tracking down holes in security systems, and exploiting the holes to defeat the operators — and you don’t think they’ll figure out who blew their whole operation?

Personally, I love that the company is going public with this. “We’re not going to let our company’s reputation go down the tubes because of BushCo PR.”

Worst of all, though, is what happens after these folks get their hooks on some AQ intel. “OK, do we call the WH this time or not?”

Yes, of course EVERYTHING is political to BushCo, even so-called national security information, military secrets, etc. If there is political gain to be had, to HELL with actual harm to the country, then it is a GO for release.

On another note, I must say “I TOLD YOU SO!”

“What?” you ask. Well, I have been proclaiming that the Dems do NOT represent us, they do NOT listen to us, that they do, in fact, IGNORE US because they KNOW they will still get the money and votes no matter what they do. Point of fact, this is proven yet again in the Democrapic plan to make the absolutely UNacceptable FISA abortion PERMANENT AND give retroactive immunity to Telcos for illegal spying for the government. The House is going to make noise like they are putting up just the slightest struggle against this but Senate, they have already full gone all in. The conference bill that results WILL include the worst unconstitutional aspects of the latest FISA abortion AND it WILL include retroactive immunity. The fix is in.

But go ahead and keep giving the fucks money and promise to vote for them. Having ALL your civil liberties taken away in service to the Police State is better when it is done by Democraps rather than Republicans. Somehow.

This crap is why I have long since QUIT THE GODDAMNED DEMOCRAP PARTY and will NOT give ANY money to those fucks or vote for a single one of them in 2006. They are NO DIFFERENT than the GOP. That is a stone-cold fact.

Actually yes. If I had my copy of the debates handy I could give you the citation. But yes, incompetence is a ground for impeachment

in that case the democrats have another tool for dialgue;

“since high crimes are not going to be enough to impeach this administration then we need to add his dangerous incompetance which are also grounds and we need to make certain as little further damage is done to this country as possible”

BREAKING: CNN reports that the SCOTUS just blocked the El-Masri civil lawsuit against the US for alleged torture of him by CIA agents and others when they held him at a black site — after picking him up on inaccurate information. SCOTUSblog has more.

BREAKING: CNN reports that the SCOTUS just blocked the El-Masri civil lawsuit against the US for alleged torture of him by CIA agents and others when they held him at a black site — after picking him up on inaccurate information. SCOTUSblog has more.

Ta-da! Torture is now officially sanctioned by the SCROTUS too. There absolutely must not be ANY relief from victims against the most holy United States of Amerika. Let me guess, 5-4 ruling.

SAO #1: OMG! Look at this tape. Don’t we have great intelligence folks! Let’s pass it along to Fox, so they can let everyone in on our genius.

SAO #2: Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if someone finds out the leak came from us?

SAO #1: How’s that ever going to happen?

Folks, you’re dealing with a company who apparently specializes in electronic hacking, tracking down holes in security systems, and exploiting the holes to defeat the operators — and you don’t think they’ll figure out who blew their whole operation?

Personally, I love that the company is going public with this. “We’re not going to let our company’s reputation go down the tubes because of BushCo PR.”

Worst of all, though, is what happens after these folks get their hooks on some AQ intel. “OK, do we call the WH this time or not?”

House introduces new FISA legislation. Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) introduced the RESTORE Act, the Responsible Electronic Surveillance that is Overseen, Reviewed, and Effective Act of 2007. Here are the key provisions:

* Restores court oversight of intelligence by requiring that electronic surveillance programs be approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Court
* Mandates that FISA warrants be obtained when the administration wants to undertake surveillance of persons in the US
* No retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies that cooperated with the administration’s warrantless surveillance
* Does not require individual warrants when targets are reasonably believed to be abroad
* Ensures FISA is the exclusive means of electronic surveillance and that no modifications can be made without express legal authorization.

The Post’s Sunday book review had a predictable denunciation scrawled by Columbia’s Samuel G. Freedman (www.samuelfreedman.com). I assume he supported the invasion of Iraq (an indispensible qualification to the Post for opining on foreign policy, especially on dissidents like Mearsheimer & Walt, or Noam Chomsky a couple weeks ago), but I couldn’t confirm it with an internet search. He does have impeccable apartheid credentials, though.

BREAKING: CNN reports that the SCOTUS just blocked the El-Masri civil lawsuit against the US for alleged torture of him by CIA agents and others when they held him at a black site — after picking him up on inaccurate information. SCOTUSblog has more.

That gives me a sick feeling; SCOTUS is going to inflict severe damage on our Country this Term.

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/….._1008.html
Navy veteran questions why six nuclear missiles were flown on combat aircraft to staging area for Middle East
John Byrne
Monday October 8, 2007

A retired lieutenant commander in the Navy Reserve who served with the Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage questioned in a little-noticed editorial Sunday why six active nuclear armed cruise missiles were being transferred to an active bomber base that “just happens to be the staging area for Middle Eastern operations.”
——————————————–
Jesus, Mary, Joseph, God, Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Allah, Yahweh, Jehovah HELP US.

Protect the Iranian people from the Bush administration…we are trying.

Praedor at 48 — Actually, not quite — it’s not as black and white as you are trying to make it out to be. They rejected it, leaving in place all the questions that are still swirling around about “state secrets” constraints rather than give the Bush Administration the blanket immunity from suit they’ve been asking for — so it’s not all roses for Bush on this one.

The civil liability question on this was far from solid, despite the abhorrent governmental conduct. But by not taking the case or not dismissing it outright on state secrets grounds, they leave open the prospect of lots of future challenges from the circuits below instead of shutting them off entirely. Which opens up an entire window of discovery into what the Administration may or may not have been doing in a much more public way through the courts. The SCOTUS simply declined to review the case — they didn’t say there weren’t some merits to it, just not enough to grant it certiorari.

Praedor at 48 — Actually, not quite — it’s not as black and white as you are trying to make it out to be. They rejected it, leaving in place all the questions that are still swirling around about “state secrets” constraints rather than give the Bush Administration the blanket immunity from suit they’ve been asking for — so it’s not all roses for Bush on this one.

The civil liability question on this was far from solid, despite the abhorrent governmental conduct. But by not taking the case or not dismissing it outright on state secrets grounds, they leave open the prospect of lots of future challenges from the circuits below instead of shutting them off entirely. Which opens up an entire window of discovery into what the Administration may or may not have been doing in a much more public way through the courts. The SCOTUS simply declined to review the case — they didn’t say there weren’t some merits to it, just not enough to grant it certiorari.

Thank you. It pays (in a totally non-fiduciary way) to have a lawyer-type around these parts for this stuff.

The Post’s Sunday book review had a predictable denunciation scrawled by Columbia’s Samuel G. Freedman (www.samuelfreedman.com). I assume he supported the invasion of Iraq (an indispensible qualification to the Post for opining on foreign policy, especially on dissidents like Mearsheimer & Walt, or Noam Chomsky a couple weeks ago), but I couldn’t confirm it with an internet search. He does have impeccable apartheid credentials, though.

House introduces new FISA legislation. Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) introduced the RESTORE Act, the Responsible Electronic Surveillance that is Overseen, Reviewed, and Effective Act of 2007. Here are the key provisions:

* Restores court oversight of intelligence by requiring that electronic surveillance programs be approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Court
* Mandates that FISA warrants be obtained when the administration wants to undertake surveillance of persons in the US
* No retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies that cooperated with the administration’s warrantless surveillance
* Does not require individual warrants when targets are reasonably believed to be abroad
* Ensures FISA is the exclusive means of electronic surveillance and that no modifications can be made without express legal authorization.

Yup, that’s the House bill that was worked on with the ACLU and which Glenn Greenwald has said is a much better bill than the abominable sell-out-to-Bush bill in the Senate.

A German citizen who claimed he was kidnapped, imprisoned and tortured by the CIA lost his appeal on Tuesday when the Supreme Court refused to review a decision dismissing the case because it would expose state secrets.

One is left wondering whether the International Courts can deal with this otherwise how in the hell can anyone get any bloody justice.

It is time for this administration to be dragged through the Hague one at a time, tried, convicted and sentenced. FDL protocols forbids me stating what I think should be done to these bastards

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is reportedly the administration’s “chief opponent of air strikes and is the main reason President George W.Bush has yet to resort to military action.” The UK Telegraph reports: “Pentagon sources say Mr Gates is waging a subtle campaign to undermine the Cheney camp by encouraging the army’s senior officers to speak frankly about the overstretch of forces, and the difficulty of fighting another war.” October 8, 2007

over the past several years Arcadi Gaydamak, an enigmatic Russian-Israeli billionaire, has managed to become a widely influential figure in Israel. And he is now at the center of a right-wing political alliance — featuring Israeli über-hawk Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu — that could dramatically influence the country’s direction. If the rising alliance takes power in the next election, it could push Israel toward military confrontations with Iran, Syria or Hezbollah, while extinguishing any remaining flickers of hope in Israel’s peace camp regarding the Palestinians.

(snip)

But it is in Israeli national politics where Gaydamak may now be a powerful — and, some say, dangerous — force. Along with his new Social Justice Party, formed in July, Gaydamak has allied himself with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Likud Party leader and former prime minister. To this alliance Gaydamak brings his rapidly increasing popularity, especially among Israel’s influential Russian population, a growing grass-roots political network, and billions of dollars. Netanyahu brings his credibility as a former prime minister, hawkish bona fides, and resurgent popularity both inside Israel and across the Atlantic, where he enjoys strong support among Washington war hawks and many delegates of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group.

Netanyahu brings his credibility as a former prime minister, hawkish bona fides, and resurgent popularity both inside Israel and across the Atlantic, where he enjoys strong support among Washington war hawks and many delegates of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group.

Thought this was fitting for today

Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

Praedor at 48 — Actually, not quite — it’s not as black and white as you are trying to make it out to be. They rejected it, leaving in place all the questions that are still swirling around about “state secrets” constraints rather than give the Bush Administration the blanket immunity from suit they’ve been asking for — so it’s not all roses for Bush on this one.

The civil liability question on this was far from solid, despite the abhorrent governmental conduct. But by not taking the case or not dismissing it outright on state secrets grounds, they leave open the prospect of lots of future challenges from the circuits below instead of shutting them off entirely. Which opens up an entire window of discovery into what the Administration may or may not have been doing in a much more public way through the courts. The SCOTUS simply declined to review the case — they didn’t say there weren’t some merits to it, just not enough to grant it certiorari.

Christy, my bad, I haven’t been following this case. Is this the case with the Bivens claim? Did SCOTUS or the Ct of Appeals say thet qualified immunity was present?

The reason I ask is b/c I wonder if the existance of the torture memos was a factor in a qualified immunity determination?

For example, you are a CIA interrigator. You get instructions from your boss to use torture. You say “is that within my job description?” Your boss comes back with a memo form the Office of Legal Counsel that says it is.

Voila, you have qualified immunity. EVEN IF THE MEMO IS INCORRECT, as long as you had some good faith basis for believing it to be correct. And when was the last time a court ruled that a layperson in gov’t could not rely on an opinion memo done by gov’t lawyers?

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 — Two months after insisting that they would roll back broad eavesdropping powers won by the Bush administration, Democrats in Congress appear ready to make concessions that could extend some crucial powers given to the National Security Agency.

Administration officials say they are confident they will win approval of the broadened authority that they secured temporarily in August as Congress rushed toward recess. Some Democratic officials concede that they may not come up with enough votes to stop approval.

(Reuters) – Private security guards escorting a convoy of four vehicles through central Baghdad killed two women on Tuesday, the Iraqi government and police said.

OT
Lhp France was spectacular against the All Blacks…what do ya think?

I think and England France matchup will be fun. Since Ex-Mr. Prop is originally form South Africa, we have always been big Springbock fans in this house, so You know how I want that half of the semi-finals to turn out.

I had fun the other night watching french language news on PBS. Almost the whole broadcast was about the win over the All Blacks. i was a bit sad, I’ve always been an All Blacks fan. But I hate hate hate the new All Blacks jerseys. The Old ones were so classy. The new ones look like crap

I suspect the AQ is so heavily infiltrated by spooks it’s hard to believe that they are actually more foe than “friend”.

Having AQ with it’s vids and threats works like a charm… the one Naomi Klein wrote about recently and so take the “enemy” with a huge grain of salt.

One needs to see WHO benefits cui bono from AQ and “islamofascist” terrorism? The presumed benefactor is the menacing terrorists, but how about the “national security state” and the huge industry which has arisen to “make us safe” and fight the nasties in the GWOT? Rudi is running for president on the terrrorism meme. He’s in love with it. It may rehabilitate his sick record as a failed and well hated mayor.

Fact: AQ was created by CIA as the mujahadeem to fight the ruskies in Kabul.

Fact: False flag operations DO take place. Witness the Bogna train station bombings blamed on the Brigadi Rosso, but were done by Italian Intel Operatives. Gulf of Tonkin got us very deeply into a very costly war which we lost… and 9.11 got us into two wars that are costing and we are losing.

Watch kabukis dance around in Potemkin Village.

Do you really believe that 9.11 was pulled of by those 19 slackers with box cutters? Really… with no help? From anyone? Really?

Mad Dogs — It is the end of the claim in US courts for this particular plaintiff, but it doesn’t preclude foreign jursidictions from taking the case — in this case Germany, because he is a German national. LHP is right about the Bivens claim coming into play in this one, as I recall, and why the civil case was on less than solid footing from the start in my opinion. (But this is coming from a lawyer who didn’t work on the case, so take that with a grain of salt — it’s just an opinion.)

By denying cert. rather than ruling on the merits, the Court leaves the door wide open for future claims on these types of cases. And doesn’t shut things down entirely with a more sweeping ruling on “state secrets” issues which, considering the make-up of this particular court, is newsworthy on its own.

I suspect the AQ is so heavily infiltrated by spooks it’s hard to believe that they are actually more foe than “friend”.

Having AQ with it’s vids and threats works like a charm… the one Naomi Klein wrote about recently and so take the “enemy” with a huge grain of salt.

One needs to see WHO benefits cui bono from AQ and “islamofascist” terrorism? The presumed benefactor is the menacing terrorists, but how about the “national security state” and the huge industry which has arisen to “make us safe” and fight the nasties in the GWOT? Rudi is running for president on the terrrorism meme. He’s in love with it. It may rehabilitate his sick record as a failed and well hated mayor.

Fact: AQ was created by CIA as the mujahadeem to fight the ruskies in Kabul.

Fact: False flag operations DO take place. Witness the Bogna train station bombings blamed on the Brigadi Rosso, but were done by Italian Intel Operatives. Gulf of Tonkin got us very deeply into a very costly war which we lost… and 9.11 got us into two wars that are costing and we are losing.

Watch kabukis dance around in Potemkin Village.

Do you really believe that 9.11 was pulled of by those 19 slackers with box cutters? Really… with no help? From anyone? Really?

I don’t.

So true but in Homeland New America we do not ask, we do not enquire, we not question we OBEY.

I don’t think anyone with half a brain uses torture to get the “truth” from anyone. They know that the tortured will say anything they need to get. But the real reason is to terrorize the rest of us to fear being tortured… essentially for no reason than to intimidate a population. It’s why they kill someone in front of others… or behead someone… to strike terror in the witnesses.

WE ALL ARE BEING TERRORIZED BY TORTURE. Where but for the grace of god go I. Anyone is fair game because the information is NOT the objective. It’s the message of cruelty you receive if you step out of line… and even if you THINK about stepping out of line.

The USA is using shock and awe.. terror tactics on anyone who doesn’t buy their myths.

They want anyone and everyone to live in fear that they too can be disappeared to some dark hell hole and be tortured and no one will do a thing for them. They like this idea out there in circulation around the world. We are watching and we can snatch you from anywhere… in America, Europe, Asia, S America or Africa. We have ears allover and we are listening.

This article may very well turn out to be accurate. Personally, I’ve been arguing since the disgraceful August FISA gift to the Bush White House that the chances were far greater that Democrats, before the six-month sunset provision elapsed, would actually pass an even worse FISA bill — one that gave the President all the warrantless surveillance powers they gave him before plus what he wants most: retroactive amnesty for lawbreaking — rather than adhering to their promise to “fix” what they did. So it is quite possible that Congressional Democrats will do here what they have been doing all year long, ever since they were pointlessly given control of Congress — namely, meekly (and/or eagerly) give George Bush everything he demands.

Like I have been suggesting for the last 6 years. We should all be referring to the GOP as the REPUBLICANTS. Obviously IQ or common sense weren’t part of the requirements that got these turds voted into office. Oh, sorry I forgot about the Ohio/Florida debacles. NOT. Do they think that there are really left and right socks? Hmmm. I wonder…the can’t do shit right party. Has a ring to it.

“Rank incompetence and utter lack of care for long term consequences to all of us,…slack-assed inattention to detail and long held security and need to know protocols.”

Don’t accuse me of bein’ a wigged-out paranoid, my tinfoil hat is firmly in place, thank you very much…but I want to know how long it’s gunna take for someone with your intelligence and experience in investigation to begin to question the “incompetence” or “poor dumb frat-boy” cover for a much more sinister reality. It seems to me that we now have a pattern that reeks of not incompetence but design, in fact, the “incompetence” cover is beginnin’ ta look a lot like the “one lone nut” theory of assinations and bombings.

Let’s take a look:
1. The president is warned directly in August of 2001 that AQ is plannin’ ta run planes into stuff, then on 9/11/01 AQ runs planes into the Trade Center and the Pentagon.
2. Within dayz of the attack Bin Laden relatives and Saudi Royals and their cohorts are whisked outta the country under US government cover.
3. Bin Laden is pinned down and a dead duck in Afghanistan but the military is told ta back off.
4. The CIA operation directly responsible for monitorin’ nuclear proliferation and weapons of mass destruction is exposed by “incompetent” government politicos so now the only folks who now about illegal or threatening proliferation are the corporations who are sponsorin’ it.
5. The Pakistani operation controlled by the Brits that has direct connections to AQ in Pakistan is exposed by a US government leak.
6. After almost a week of warnin’ from the National Weather Service that a “5″ hurricane is likely, the “incompetent” federal government goes ta sleep and then assaults the wounded city and hundreds of thousands of its population with “incompetent” FEMA and highly competent Blackwater mercenaries.
7. The “incompetent” US government attacks a defenseless sovereign nation with inadequate forces, hollows out the military, contracts out essential military services and then looses all control of the corporate mercenaries who are put in charge of security for those personnel who may be in a position to blow the whistle on the whole corrupt operation.

The situation we are in is not a consequence of “incompetent” political leadership, it is the result of a highly competent and terribly corrupt fascist intelligence that has been growin’ in place for over 50 years.

“”We got more information out of a German general with a game of chess or Ping-Pong than they do today, with their torture,” said Henry Kolm, 90, an MIT physicist who had been assigned to play chess in Germany with Hitler’s deputy, Rudolf Hess.

I mean, come one! Did you actually fall for the “Grecian Formula” Osama? How many of you actually watched that “presentation”? Not many, I would imagine, as if you did, you’d know that after this dubbed old video of a much younger Osama got to the point where he was referencing current events…the image froze, and all you heard was his supposed voice! Do you not get how feeble this was as an attempt to pretend that Osama the boogy-man is still alive and well? I’ve heard the most ridiculous notions advanced as to what was up with his beard but nobody bothered with the obvious: It’s a very old video that they chopped up in the most ridiculous way, counting on the likelyhood that you wouldn’t bother to actually watch it and would simply accept the media telling you that it was all bona fide.

Wake up folks. SITE is a group whose intention is to advance and continue never ending war and it fabricates bin Laden videos. End of story.

A German citizen who claimed he was kidnapped, imprisoned and tortured by the CIA lost his appeal on Tuesday when the Supreme Court refused to review a decision dismissing the case because it would expose state secrets.

One is left wondering whether the International Courts can deal with this otherwise how in the hell can anyone get any bloody justice.

…

If we don’t stop this then what is to protect any American citizen abroad from being kidnapped tortured and then dumped out in the backside of Albania or Kazakhstan or Namibia or in the outback of Australia?

Bush obviously doesn’t care about that, but Congress should. After all, there are times they and their families will be traveling abroad.